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BAI BANG "Living My Dream"


hardrockhaven

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Bai Bang's new cd comes out next month and I gotta say I'm pretty stoked about it. I thought their last album was pretty bland, but I'm digging the samples on this new one. There are some really catchy choruses going on on most of these tracks. Check out the link below:

 

http://nehrecords.com/SHOP/BaiLivin.htm

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I did get a sneaky listen to an advance of this album over the weekend and I'm going to put it right out there, that at the moment this is as good as Miss Behaviour or Bad Habit, which for me are still the two contenders for album of the year. I'll also put it out there, that this is Bai Bang's second best CD yet.

 

I enjoy all Bai Bang CDs (except the dreadful 'Enemy Lines') but after 'Cop to Con' this is the most melodic and catchy thing they have ever done. Almost every chorus is crazy anthemic and super catchy. They've really outdone themselves this time and this will no doubt be one of the surprises of the year. Something like the first 5 songs in a row were all killer. There's a couple of "only good" songs and the last track is one of them, but there's a few more just as strong as the first 5 towards the end of the CD too. Wonderful stuff.

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i agree Geoff. I don't know if Cop To Con is better, and I haven't heard their last album, how good is it ? but listened to this album twice yesterday, I'm gonna say I'm stunned and very happy with it. It's like the harmonic came from Def Leppard - Adrenalize era, mixed with the syrupy very-polished melodic rock of Reckless Love, and probably some 80s Roxette feel to it.

 

Great stuff and hopefully the price is quite reasonable :guitbannana:

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i agree Geoff. I don't know if Cop To Con is better, and I haven't heard their last album, how good is it ? but listened to this album twice yesterday, I'm gonna say I'm stunned and very happy with it. It's like the harmonic came from Def Leppard - Adrenalize era, mixed with the syrupy very-polished melodic rock of Reckless Love, and probably some 80s Roxette feel to it.

 

Great stuff and hopefully the price is quite reasonable :guitbannana:

Their last album was good, but certainly nothing like this one. I thought it wasn't as good as either 'Ridin' High' or 'Attitude.' Still a good album, though and well worth adding to your collection. All this bands' CDs are, except the debut.

 

I agree there is a hint of Def Leppard in the current sounds... it is very nice.

 

I like bands like these guys, Treat and Bad Habit off the top of my head, who can still create a CD that sits validly in their discography, giving their "classic" albums a run for their money. Well done to the guys.

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  • 3 months later...

Great album. I might say it is better than copy to con. The only downside for me is the mixing of the album which I don't think is that good. It sound dated and not that crystal clear. "Come on" is a clear winner.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yGw1aoa1oc&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL01EDBE3D45087560

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There are some real killer tracks on here which are as Ali says above, let down by a muddy production and dodgy mix, that frankly, I could have done better myself. A real shame, as this could have been up there with the big guns.

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There are some real killer tracks on here which are as Ali says above, let down by a muddy production and dodgy mix, that frankly I could have done better myself. A real shame, as this could have been up there with the big guns.

 

Yeah, I also think the production is also the disappointing part, but that doesn't kill those fantastic songs inside.

 

Am still looking for a decent price for this disc but helpless, how much did you buy this one Jez and where ?

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There are some real killer tracks on here which are as Ali says above, let down by a muddy production and dodgy mix, that frankly, I could have done better myself. A real shame, as this could have been up there with the big guns.

 

Yeah, I also think the production is also the disappointing part, but that doesn't kill those fantastic songs inside.

 

Am still looking for a decent price for this disc but helpless, how much did you buy this one Jez and where ?

 

 

Got mine from hmv.co.uk for £9.99 with free p+p in the UK.

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Still digging this album after numerous spins since it came out. This is one of the year's best imo. I think I got my copy from NEH Records.

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I couldn't buy this album. Have heard the clips and the production is a killer. Who lets stuff go out like this?

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I couldn't buy this album. Have heard the clips and the production is a killer. Who lets stuff go out like this?

 

It's not unlistenable, but would have been soo much better with a top class production. As you say, listening to some of the quality stuff coming out in this genre at the moment, very surprising it was let go sounding like this, but budgets are budgets I suppose. Good disc all the same.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I have to admit I always give this stuff I hear via MP3 first the benefit of the doubt. I always just assume they're low quality MP3's. But having this on CD now, it must be said that the production is a downfall. Vocally and lyrically it's pretty weak too, but thankfully the songs are consistently very strong. I also don't understand production jobs like this - because it varies so much from song to song. Seriously, some songs just sound like they were produced by someone different all together - all poorly. Shame, because song-wise it is a very cool album.

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I have to admit I always give this stuff I hear via MP3 first the benefit of the doubt. I always just assume they're low quality MP3's. But having this on CD now, it must be said that the production is a downfall. Vocally and lyrically it's pretty weak too, but thankfully the songs are consistently very strong. I also don't understand production jobs like this - because it varies so much from song to song. Seriously, some songs just sound like they were produced by someone different all together - all poorly. Shame, because song-wise it is a very cool album.

 

I must be a complete numpty as I don't really get the production comments - what should I be hearing?

 

Agree with above re vocals, don't like them at all. This isn't my bag of chips.

 

(Edit: Quite like 'Put On Her Dress', but the singer kinda ruins it for me.)

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I have to admit I always give this stuff I hear via MP3 first the benefit of the doubt. I always just assume they're low quality MP3's. But having this on CD now, it must be said that the production is a downfall. Vocally and lyrically it's pretty weak too, but thankfully the songs are consistently very strong. I also don't understand production jobs like this - because it varies so much from song to song. Seriously, some songs just sound like they were produced by someone different all together - all poorly. Shame, because song-wise it is a very cool album.

 

I must be a complete numpty as I don't really get the production comments - what should I be hearing?

 

Agree with above re vocals, don't like them at all. This isn't my bag of chips.

 

(Edit: Quite like 'Put On Her Dress', but the singer kinda ruins it for me.)

I was thinking the other day how I think Tim (2) is by far the harshest critic of production jobs on this forum, but I'm probably not too far behind. I'm just a little more polite and a touch more handsome. So I asked myself why? Well I didn't, but I did find a common link. On this forum, the two of us are arguably the most interested in modern rock/metal too. And sometimes when I hear a modern rock album back to back with an album like this, I honestly wonder what the f*ck is going on and tell myself that even if a radio station played this sort of stuff, albums like this, imo, could not find a spot on radio anyway because it's just not even close to the production standard one has come to expect in 2011. Or even in 1990. :lol:

 

I am obviously not a producer myself and don't know the first thing about it by my own admission, but surely the mix and those drums sound a bit off, don't they? It just doesn't sound clean, clear or crisp. Completely void of balls in the rhythm section.

 

I actually completely appreciate that if you only really listen to the bands of HH that there probably isn't too much to notice. But whatever you think of the music, modern rock/metal is for the most part flawlessly produced every single time these days. And because I listen to so much of it I guess I get used to that quality and notice it a little more when a CD is not up to, or even close to that standard on a melodic rock disc.

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i'm afraid it might be because of the limited budget the band has. These days, and to count the current economy, making and recording music probably not cheap (studio rent, sound engineer, etc) unless you do it at home or in your basement, so there's a big chance this kind

of thing is because of that

 

and they must also calculate the risk of their music didn't sell very well must be taken into consideration when they decided how much they're willing to sink into the production cost.

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i'm afraid it might be because of the limited budget the band has. These days, and to count the current economy, making and recording music probably not cheap (studio rent, sound engineer, etc) unless you do it at home or in your basement, so there's a big chance this kind

of thing is because of that

 

and they must also calculate the risk of their music didn't sell very well must be taken into consideration when they decided how much they're willing to sink into the production cost.

 

This is true, but how many albums on small record labels still manage to sound great? Often if a band have used session musicians - especially for they rhythm section - this is what gets toned down in the mix, and any form of Rock music is heavily reliant on the beat to drive the music. Either that or the mastering process buggers it up and the band never hear the final output until it's on sale. Bands should, IMO, take more control of this process and not leave it to others, as I can't spend my money on albums like this (no matter how much I like the band) therefore it will impact their sales...

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i'm afraid it might be because of the limited budget the band has. These days, and to count the current economy, making and recording music probably not cheap (studio rent, sound engineer, etc) unless you do it at home or in your basement, so there's a big chance this kind

of thing is because of that

 

and they must also calculate the risk of their music didn't sell very well must be taken into consideration when they decided how much they're willing to sink into the production cost.

 

This is true, but how many albums on small record labels still manage to sound great? Often if a band have used session musicians - especially for they rhythm section - this is what gets toned down in the mix, and any form of Rock music is heavily reliant on the beat to drive the music. Either that or the mastering process buggers it up and the band never hear the final output until it's on sale. Bands should, IMO, take more control of this process and not leave it to others, as I can't spend my money on albums like this (no matter how much I like the band) therefore it will impact their sales...

Yeah, if there hadn't been bands with zero budget who had made great sounding albums, I'd happily accept the budget thing. But like Tim said, there are a heap of examples of bands with no budget who have made a good-sounding album. Just listen to the online-only free download EP from the Aussie band someone just posted on this forum. De LuCa or whatever they were called. I can only imagine they had the budget of a shoelace, but that sounds very good.

 

The thing that always really sticks out for me - like Tim also mentions above - is a weak rhythm section. You can make fun of a drummer and their place in a band all you want, but if the drums don't come across well on a CD, nothing single-handedly ruins the sound more easy for me than a weak drum recording.

 

Anyway, fact is, there are still plenty of very well produced CDs being made within our genres, and it's certainly not always the bands with the biggest budgets. :)

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2 examples of awesome production in 2011 is Work Of Art and Dynazty (Euro).....both sound awesome and that's even on my shitty car stereo.

 

Bai Bang production is crap......so is Mitch Malloy II......

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2 examples of awesome production in 2011 is Work Of Art and Dynazty (Euro).....both sound awesome and that's even on my shitty car stereo.

 

Bai Bang production is crap......so is Mitch Malloy II......

 

To be perfectly honest, even the Bai Bang songs don't sound that great to me (even putting aside the production - if that were possible). So I'd pass regardless. Mitch Malloy is different, great sounding songs but crap sound...

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2 examples of awesome production in 2011 is Work Of Art and Dynazty (Euro).....both sound awesome and that's even on my shitty car stereo.

 

Bai Bang production is crap......so is Mitch Malloy II......

 

To be perfectly honest, even the Bai Bang songs don't sound that great to me (even putting aside the production - if that were possible). So I'd pass regardless. Mitch Malloy is different, great sounding songs but crap sound...

 

Yeah in comparison to the debut the production is poor - the vocals are a bit buried IMO

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I also wanted to say - after a few vintage Bai Bang songs popped up on my Ipod this morning - that I also think it's the production's fault that the vocals sound so bad on this new one too. No one is ever going to be accused of saying Diddi is a word class vocalist, but it should also be noted that he has gone through 5 previous releases (ranging from the poor debut to the solid 'Are you ready,' inclusive of the classics 'Cop to Con' and 'Ridin' High' and excellent 'Attitude') and his vocals have never once been an issue for me. In fact, I've always quite enjoyed the dude.

 

So I don't think it's a coincidence that all of a sudden he sounds so bad on arguably their worst produced CD yet.

 

Anyway, like I've said on this, I still love the songs and song-wise it's easily one of their best CDs. One does have to wonder just how amazing this would have been with a stellar production job.

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btw i haven't checked on the drummer, but as i recall, the drumming on their classic album, 'Cop To Con', is also very poor, even sounding like a hollow drum machine, am i right ? is it the same guy ?

 

regarding the production, i have an analysis that AOR Heaven really gives the artist the freedom to manage the production on their own budget and they're only responsible for the printing and distribution. I also spotted a slight muddy production on the new Bad Habit - Atmosphere but a really brilliant one on Newman, and all of em under AOR Heaven, so that's different than, say Avenue of Allies or Frontiers.

 

last thing I check, AoA invited Chris Laney for the latest Alyson Avenue albums, and Frontiers, hm probably Dennis Ward is their fave personnel to handle this thing, so that's the reason most of their releases are great sounding.

 

another thing to note here is that you guys said that many smaller labels band have great production, IMO, just because they're on small label, doesn't mean they have small budget. It's like an analogy of just because a guy looks awful in appearance, doesn't mean he's poor.

 

I'm not saying Bai Bang is poor, but maybe they limit the budget on something else but not production, or there's another thing we don't know what happened on this one, but to me personally, even though production is still an important factor, songs quality are more important, so good songs are always good and enjoyable songs, and I found this album to be enjoyable, so I don't mind putting few bucks to buy and keep this.

 

We all had bought many badly-produced albums in the past, so let's just consider this one came out straight from 1986, unfortunate to not enjoy a luxury sound equipment and engineer, and just simply enjoy it :)

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